Martha A. Phelps, President Allentown-lehigh County Chamber Of Commerce

February 26, 1995|by MARTHA A. PHELPS (A free-lance story for The Morning Call)

Calls and letters come into the Allentown-Lehigh County Chamber of Commerce every week from around the region and throughout the country asking the same question. "Who's hiring?" From recent graduates to seasoned executives available because of downsizing, the search is on. Our response to these inquiries is not, "You ought to look into Company ABC or XYZ." It is more along the lines of "What can you do and what would you like to do?" The range of jobs and careers offered in today's Lehigh Valley business environment is vast. Challenges and opportunities in the multitude of small and medium-size companies are in sharp contrast to what one would have found just 20 years ago. Then, a job search often involved applying to just three or four major corporations. If successful, after a period of company-wide training, one frequently embarked on a corporate career track which focused on a given profession. The sheer size of companies made specialization a necessity.

Today, though perhaps not as easy to find and often not as lucrative, many jobs offer more variety and excitement than ever. This is because companies that are hiring are relatively small in size. Many of them employ 10 to 50 workers and need individuals with multi-skill backgrounds or general degrees. Employees must be flexible in attitudes and talents; some use the word "agile." Job descriptions are obsolete. True specialists are rare. Companies work in teams. They set the goal of "customer delight," and reroute their specific path to that goal as often as is needed to keep ahead of the competition. And, that competition is springing forth at a dizzying pace from around the region and around the globe.

Proficiency in basic skills, problem solving, teamwork and logical thinking often outweighs technical skills. Individuals have opportunities to draw on all their learning and experience for ways to achieve mutual goals that have been set by teams.

Many of today's careers themselves are "kaleidoscopes." In some ways, it's a little like stepping back before the industrial age when owners and most employees had to be multi-skilled. Technology and the global economy have changed the specifics, but the concept remains the same. The winners in this scenario are the job-seekers who are willing to openly embrace new concepts and the "kaleidoscope" of possibilities that this new career environment represents for employees and entrepreneurs of all ages.